An early start and a cab across town dropped us at the G8 Sapa Tour office, where we were booked on a bus to the tourist hotspot. Buses in Vietnam have come a long way, and this one had 24 bed-cabins in which to comfortably spend the six-hour journey to Sapa. The journey went by quickly, and we were in our Airbnb apartment overlooking the town and enjoying the cooler climes away from the oppressive city heat by late afternoon.
There was very little around the apartment block aside from more construction, roosters, and dogs, so we walked downhill towards the town the next morning to grab a motorcycle. The bikes we wanted (Yamaha PG-1s) were all out, or price hiked as it was a public holiday tomorrow, we were told. Besides, the weather was pretty dismal for sightseeing on two wheels, so we grabbed an automatic and spent the afternoon wandering around Sapa town, doing a little more shopping, eating Pho Bo, and getting some more photos before an afternoon rest.
We rode back into town that evening, and the place was a thronging hive of people and traffic, though nowhere near Lijiang’s levels of crowding. Multi-level fully illuminated restaurants all selling similar Vietnamese food lined the main street, and the town square was buzzing in anticipation of a cultural show to celebrate the public holiday on the 30th for the reunification of Saigon in April 1975.
Cat Cat Village
The fog was so thick this morning that we could barely see the ground from our tenth-floor apartment. We dumped the clapped-out Airblade and walked through town, grabbing a baguette, to another motorcycle rental place to pick up two Yamaha PG-1s, which are much more suited to the town and hills.
It seems like the whole of North Vietnam had descended on Sapa today as the roads were gridlocked with EVs and SUVs, but no problem for the nimble Yammy. We rode to Cat Cat Village, a few kilometers away, battling the traffic all the way. This semi-mock village in a scenic valley has been set up with waterfalls, restaurants, hilltribe crafts, and of course, plenty of selfie stations and throngs of photographers offering their skills to girls dolled up in local attire.
Despite the overall artificial feel of the place, it was quite photogenic and nice to find a strategic spot for the telephoto and grab a beer, watching the crowds ebb and flow on what was probably the busiest day of the year.
The weather hadn’t improved and was still a low grey mist with temperatures struggling to get above 15 degrees all day. By the time we got back to the apartment, visibility was down to a few meters as the fog thickened.
Next: Sapa
Previous: Hanoi
